Atlas Lions suffer setback on eve of blockbuster France clash

Morocco have been dealt a fresh injury blow ahead of their World Cup quarter-final against France, with forward Ismael Saibari ruled out of Friday's high-stakes clash.

Morocco head coach Mohamed Ouahbi confirmed on Thursday that the attacking midfielder, who has been in outstanding form throughout the tournament, will miss the match due to injury. The Atlas Lions face France at 2:00am Bangladesh time on Friday for a place in the semi-finals.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Ouahbi said the rest of his squad was fully fit and available for selection. "Everyone except Saibari is a hundred per cent fit. This match has come a bit too soon for him. But I'm hopeful he hasn't been ruled out of the rest of the tournament," he said.

Saibari has been one of Morocco's standout performers at this World Cup, scoring in all three group-stage matches. He also converted the winning penalty in the shootout victory over the Netherlands in the round of 32.

The 23-year-old, who recently completed a move from PSV Eindhoven to Bayern Munich for around 50 million euros, suffered a hamstring injury during Morocco's 3-0 win over Canada in the last 16 and was forced off before the end of regulation time. Substitute Soufiane Rahimi came on to score Morocco's third goal in that match.

Morocco will be looking to avenge their 2022 World Cup semi-final exit, when they lost 2-0 to France in Qatar. Despite Saibari's absence leaving a significant gap in attack, Ouahbi struck a confident tone ahead of a match his side hope will produce a historic result against the tournament favourites.

"I watched that 2022 match on television as an ordinary fan," Ouahbi said. "Tomorrow, we play to reach the semi-final."